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This compared with 795,000 people born in India, which had been the most common non-UK country of birth for the previous 11 years.

Madeleine Sumption, director of the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, said: “Traditionally the UK’s relationship with Ireland and the former colonies have been key factors in shaping its migrant population.

“What we can see from current data is that in recent years the EU has played a similar role.”

Carolyn Harris has slammed the government for missing the immigration target (Image: Western Mail)

Labour slammed the Government for missing its immigration target yet again as Ministers insisted the Brexit vote will ultimately change Britain’s long-term immigration strategy.

Shadow Home Office minister Carolyn Harris said: “Once again, the Tory promise on immigration lies in tatters and net migration remains more than three times their target.”

Phoebe Griffith, associate director for migration, integration and communities at the Institute for Public Policy Research, added: “They say the definition of madness is repeating the same thing and expecting a different result.

Babies born to foreign mums

ONS

“Yet the Government continues to stand by a net migration target that neither the public nor many ministers have confidence in.”

Tory Immigration minister Robert Goodwill said reducing the number of migrants coming to the UK will be a priority for the negotiations to leave the EU.

He added: “We are also committed to reducing non-EU migration across all visa routes in order to bring net migration down to sustainable levels as soon as possible.”